Eric

Biden Economics

Eric S

With Joe Biden being elected and his inauguration just recently having taken place, what are some of the economic policies he will look to implement during his time as president? Americans and foreigners all hold their concerns, around his capabilities, around the situation that has been left for him by former president Donald Trump, and how he will deal with the current pandemic causing unrest for millions of people. In this article, I will aim to look at all of these points and will make a final judgement as to whether or not I agree with the measures he is planning to put in place.

It only seems right to start off with the reason why everyone has felt massive amounts of unease and displacement over the past year, and that is the coronavirus. To start off with, his predecessor was an awful example of how to handle a seriously concerning virus, although I am not in the right to comment on that topic as our Prime Minister has not done any better. This article, https://doggett.house.gov/media-center/blog-posts/timeline-trump-s-coronavirus-responses, is an amazing article that has comprised quotes and facts over the past year or so regarding Trump and his reactions and actions that he took toward the coronavirus. Ranging from “We have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China. It’s going to be just fine.” in January 2020, to “Looks like by April, you know in theory when it gets a little warmer, it miraculously goes away.” and “I think that's a problem that’s going to go away… They have studied it. They know very much. In fact, we’re very close to a vaccine.” in February 2020 to “This is nobody's fault but China.” in September of 2020. Regardless of how self-centered and obnoxious all of his remarks are, in some cases actions do speak louder than words. However, when your actions and words are both completely unhelpful and inconsiderate, you haven't really got much going for yourself. Wasting time following poor scientific leads, blaming China for all the horrible things that they have caused and laying the blame on other American companies are all tactics to take the inspection off of him, and how poorly he and his team have handled the situation.

Now, what is Biden going to attempt? On January 14th 2021, he revealed his $1.9 trillion emergency relief plan to aid American families, businesses and communities. $1.9 trillion. What an incredible number. Just saying it is making me feel a bit dizzy. His proposal, titled the ‘American Rescue Plan’ can be divided into three parts. $400 billion for vaccines and testing of the coronavirus, more than $1 trillion in direct relief to families and $440 billion for aid to communities and businesses. He also aims to deliver 100 million vaccines in 100 days. In mid-December, Trump stated he would administer 20 million vaccines by the end of the year. A CDC tracker shows that only about 2 million people were actually vaccinated.

What are Biden’s policies on taxes? Well, in 2017, a $1.5 trillion tax cut was implemented by Congress that was largely focused toward corporations and high-income individuals. Biden is now trying to put in place the tax rules that were in place before the reversion. However, Biden steered clear of some of the more progressive plans offered by his Democratic rivals, stressing that a lot of the tax increases would fall only on those earning above $400,000. Still, he seeks to return the top individual tax rate on incomes above that level to 39.6% from its present 37%.

Finally, how is Biden looking to combat climate change? The president's executive order sets a goal of conserving at least 30% of land and water by 2030, and begins the process for the U.S. to develop an emission reduction target and a climate finance plan. On top of that, he rejoined the Paris climate agreement.

Bibliography:

Smart, Tim. “Joe Biden’s Economic To-Do List.” US News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 2021, www.usnews.com/news/the-report/articles/2021-01-22/coronavirus-climate-and-china-top-joe-bidens-economic-to-do-list.

Quinn, Melissa. “‘It’s Time to Act’: Biden Rolls out New Actions on Climate Change.” Www.cbsnews.com, 28 Jan. 2021, www.cbsnews.com/news/biden-signs-executive-actions-climate-change/. Accessed 29 Jan. 2021.

Werner, Erica, and Jeff Stein. “Biden Unveils $1.9 Trillion Economic and Health-Care Relief Package.” Washington Post, www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/01/14/biden-stimulus-covid-relief/.

Doggett, Lloyd. “Timeline of Trump’s Coronavirus Responses.” Congressman Lloyd Doggett, 17 Sept. 2020, doggett.house.gov/media-center/blog-posts/timeline-trump-s-coronavirus-responses.